By Niall Gartland

THE Cavan footballers will be confident of maintaining their winning record when they take on Longford in Kingspan Breffni this Sunday.

These two sides are on opposite ends of the table with Cavan holding top spot while Longford are dead last after defeats to Fermanagh and Westmeath.

They haven’t been particularly close affairs either – the midlands side fell seven points shy of Fermanagh on their first day out before falling to a bruising defeat to Westmeath, conceding four goals and 16 points and only mustering nine points at the other end of the pitch.

So in theory this should be one of Cavan’s handier matches of the campaign. Mickey Graham’s side have looked sharp from the word go this season and were full value for their win over Tipperary a fortnight ago, with Dara McVeety’s three first-half points sending them on their way to a resounding victory.

Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of this fixture and indeed fixtures to come is who will make the final 15.

Mickey Graham has serious options at his disposal with players like Tiarnan Madden looking like a real find, Oisin Brady making his mark up front, and established performers like Jason McLoughlin, Gerard Smith and Gearóid McKiernan still working their way back into the picture.

The healthy competition for places has to be one of the reasons why Cavan are performing so well in the early stages of the new year.

If they maintain their current form, they may well find themselves with a promotion spot guaranteed a few games in advance of the final round.